British Bikes Ruled
Fort Sutter Chapter National Meet
Dixon, California, June 2006
By Jim Moore
Photos by Martin Lund

The 2006 Dixon national meet is now history. As in the past, the meet was held at the Dixon, California, Fairgrounds, 20 miles west of Sacramento, just off Interstate 80. This venue has been our home for the past several years and has proven to be a good location with plenty of shade trees, nearby lodging and reasonably easy access.

The weather was clear and warm, ideal conditions for a club event. We welcomed our early arriving vendors with a hosted BBQ Thursday evening after they were settled into their chosen spaces. Shirley Kergel and her hard-working helpers made sure that everyone got plenty to eat and drink.

Friday morning saw the formal opening with the arrival of additional venders and the public. Pam Crawford, our Registrar, reported that we did well in the number of vendors, down just slightly from 2005. Gate admission donations were good and we had a number of new members sign up.

Many of our solid, regular vendors showed up, including Gary Stark from Starklite, Mike Tomas of Kiwi Motorcycles and Mike Smith of Antique Motorcycle Works.

Our new contract food vendor proved very popular, offering a wide variety of food and drinks to the crowd at very reasonable prices. He also handled the Saturday Night Banquet, and folks seemed pleased with both the quality and quantity of the food.

Two singles and a Four. Three Ariels, 1935, 1948 and a '56.


This 1915 Indian sidecar outfit was a knockout.

Technical Seminars were held both Friday and Saturday and were well attended. George Hood and Bob Kergel gave excellent presentations on transmission rebuilding and painting and preparation.

British motorcycles were featured this year, which brought out a nice variety of machines. Over the last couple of meets we have seen an encouraging increase in the number of British marques presented. We enjoyed the presence of several Ariels, both singles and Square 4s, a good variety of Triumphs and BSAs with a sprinkling of more exotic types, like Vincents. Of course, Indian and Harley-Davidson were also well represented.

We were pleased to welcome National Chief Judge Kevin Valentine and National Assistant Chief Judge Robin Markey, as well as Deputy Field Judge Red Fred Johansen. These gentlemen along with all our great volunteer judges helped ensure the judging program went off with a minimum of problems. Thirty-five motorcycles were judged for national recognition.

Richard Morris stole the show with his beautiful Militaire which attracted admirers like moths to a flame. We were all a little concerned when the Militaire balked at starting, but with the help of a couple of eager pushers it came to life and satisfied the judges that it was a runner, not just a museum piece.

This two-tone red and black 1939 Indian Four drew a crowd.

Barbara Hardmeyer, spouse of Chapter President Rich Hardmeyer, put forth a first-class lunch for the judging group, ensuring they were all in good spirits. Personally, I was very impressed with the overall quality of the motorcycles presented for judging and display.

Mark Milton, Chapter Vice-President, supervised the Field Meet as well as competing in it, ultimately gaining top score. Quite an accomplishing and at no time did his feet touch the ground!

My wife Marie and her crew decorated the Banquet Hall with a British theme. Marie had donated a large theater marquee poster from the movie The World's Fastest Indian to be raffled at the banquet after the awards had been presented. The bidding was hot and heavy, but Richard Morris (of Militaire fame) cast the winning bid of $200 to the cheers of the crowd.

Sunday Morning a small group of riders enjoyed a cruise through the Sacramento River Delta led by Road Captain Jerry Bland. Our usual watering hole, Al the Wop's in the historic town of Locke, served as the lunch stop for the group. Visiting Al's is a life experience everyone should have.

Kelly Thompson, meet coordinator and Tom Green, silver-tongued public announcer, both helped to see the meet through to a successful completion. If anything could be improved, it would be an increase in participation by members other than the usual Worker Bees. This is a problem shared by most chapters. So many members are content to not involve themselves in activities that require effort and commitment and allow a core working group to carry the burden. If you want your organization to thrive...step up and participate. Who knows, you might even enjoy it.


Here's a brand you don't see everyday. A 1971 Italian Leggero. A bike with a Milwaukee connection.


British bikes were everywhere. This 1952 Ariel was a prime example.


Iron Dinosaur Special. Need we say more.